Animal lover Chantelle Houghton tells Closer why there’s so much work to be done and how people can help big cats in captivity.
She says, “The documentary is absolutely nuts. No wild animal should be locked up in a cage and paraded around for people to gawp at. But I’m really glad it’s opened up the conversation about animals in captivity, and I hope it helps change the world and how people feel.
“I feel privileged to have been featured. I did that campaign with PETA in 2011, where I stood outside the Houses Of Parliament dressed as a tiger to raise awareness of the cruelty of keeping tigers in zoos or circuses.”
Mum-of-one Chantelle, 36 – who rose to fame on Celebrity Big Brother in 2006, and who last week announcedshe’d got engaged to her boyfriend, though is keeping his identity a secret – has always felt strongly about the welfare of animals, becoming vegetarian at 11 years old.
She says, “I watched a documentary about animal cruelty at school, and it stuck with me. I’ve not eaten meat since that day, and I’ve been vegan for the last five years.
“Animal cruelty is something that I genuinely think about every day and it horrifies me. I’ve done multiple campaigns with PETA over the years and I think they’re brilliant for shocking people with statistics and making them want to help.”
Check out: the most outrageous CBB moments
Celebrity Big Brother's most outrageous moments SLIDER
1 of 31Roxanne Pallett accused Ryan Thomas of punching her
When Roxanne Pallett and Ryan Thomas were playing fighting no one was quite prepared when the Emmerdale actress claimed that he punched her hard in the ribs. She was quick to tell the rest of the housemates, ask Big Brother why Ryan wasn't removed from the house and branded him 'a liar', 'manipulative' and 'calculating'. During an eviction the CBB crowd were chanting for Roxanne to leave and shortly after she quit the show.That didn't stop the nation from being furious and Ofcom received over 11,000 complaints. She's since apologised for her actions but Ryan's brother Adam has slammed her apology and so has the Corrie star's girlfriend Lucy Mecklenburgh.
2 of 31Kim Woodburn's explosive row
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3 of 31Christopher Biggins' shocking removal
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4 of 31Stephen Bear and Chloe Khan's bathroom saga
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5 of 31Stephen Bear's love affair
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6 of 31Gemma Collins' controversial decision
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7 of 31Megan McKenna's meltdown
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8 of 31Stephanie and Jeremy's romance
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9 of 31'David's Dead' confusion
In 2016, Tiffany Pollard was hysterical after mishearing Angie Bowie's news that her husband David Bowie had died, and mistaking him for her fellow housemate David Gest.
10 of 31Stephanie Davis' knickers humiliation
In 2016, John Partridge, Christopher Maloney and Darren Day came across Stephanie's dirty underwear and publicly mocked her stains, referring to them as "pigeon s--t".
11 of 31Winston McKenzie's homophobic slur
In 2016, housemates were left stunned as Winston McKenzie's homophobic views were exposed in a task, as he compared gay adoption to "child abuse".
12 of 31Lewis Bloor and Marnie Simpson's shower scene
In 2016, Marnie Simpson and Lewis Bloor enjoyed a naked romp in the showers... Nice.
13 of 31Perez Hilton's sexual threats
Perez Hilton repeatedly tells Calum Best he'd "shove his huge dk up your ae" during a heated row in 2015.
14 of 31Perez Hilton harassing Katie Hopkins
During their daily bust-ups in 2015, Perez Hilton tried to lick Katie Hopkins whilst singing "lick it good, suck this d**k just like you should"... charming.
15 of 31Alicia Douvall banana-gate
In 2015, Alicia Douvall was left in tears after housemates caught her stealing bananas and hiding them under her bed... there's worse sins!
16 of 31Ken Morley's racist slur
Ken Morley was removed from the house in 2015 for using the 'n-word' in a heated discussion with Alexander O'Neal.
17 of 31Lee Ryan, Casey Batchelor and Jasmine Waltz's love triangle
Following her on-screen romance with Lee Ryan, Jasmine Waltz re-entered the house after he quickly moved on to fellow housemate Casey Bachelor in 2014.
18 of 31Leslie Jordan's row with Frenchy
In 2014, Leslie Jordan lost his cool with Frenchy after she cut up his underwear, calling her "white trash" and a "stinking French s**t!"
19 of 31Dappy's raunchy bathroom scene
Dappy 'windmilled' after jumping in the pool with Luisa in 2014.
20 of 31Spencer and Heidi Pratt's villainous antics
In 2013, Spencer and Heidi Pratt prevented housemate Claire Richards from getting a letter from her children... AND celebrated it.
21 of 31Lauren Harries falling over 24/7
Lauren Harries constantly tripped over in 2013. How?!
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22 of 31Denise Welch's drunken antics
In 2012, Karissa Shannon threatened to leave and sue the show as a drunken Denise Welch jokingly pulled down her trousers and exposed her bum.
23 of 31Frankie Cocozza and Nicola Maclean get steamy in the hot tub
Frankie Cocozza and Nicola Maclean get steamy in the hot tub in 2012.
24 of 31Julie Goodyear's banana scene
Julie Goodyear got a little too personal with a banana in 2012.
25 of 31Jedward get vajazzled
Jedward got vajazzled by Amy Childs in 2011... not something you want to see every day.
26 of 31Alex Reid's beauty regime
Alex Reid got a fake tan in the buff in 2010.
27 of 31Verne Troyer's drunken collision
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28 of 31Jade Goody vs. Shilpa Shetty
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29 of 31George Galloway's cat incident
George Galloway pretended to be a pussy-cat in 2006. A nation shuddered.
30 of 31Jackie Stallone's shock arrival
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31 of 31Vanessa Feltz tragic meltdown
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Chantelle says that having always felt strongly against zoos and circuses, she jumped at the chance to team up with PETA to do a campaign about big cat captivity – and that watching Tiger King has stirred up those feelings.
She says, “It’s absolutely disgusting that there are more tigers living in captivity than living in their natural habitats. They are wild animals – they weren’t put on Earth to live in cages. There was a news story a while back about a zookeeper who was killed by a lion when he was in its cage. It sounds harsh, but of course a wild animal can kill a human, what do you expect? It’s their instinct.
“Watching Tiger King made me so angry. I will say, in Joe’s defence, that I think he does love his animals – but he just can’t see the hypocrisy in how terribly he’s treating them by keeping them locked in cages and parading them around for people to take pictures with. It’s crazy that this is still allowed to happen.”
Since 2011, when Chantelle did the campaign, the problem of big cats in captivity has been ongoing – but there was progress when, in January this year, the use of wild animals in circuses was banned in the UK.
But Chantelle insists that there need to be more laws passed about the owning of wild animals globally, and that we can all help to make changes.
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She says, “There’s a lot of work to be done. Until the ownership of wild animals is made illegal across the globe, it will keep happening. What we at home can do is to boycott zoos and animal parks around the world. If we stop going, there’ll be less of a demand and they won’t be able to stay open.
“Yes, it’s amazing to see big cats up close, but we have one glimpse of them and then go on with our free lives. They are locked up 24/7 and it’s just not fair. They don’t belong there and they’re not for our entertainment.
“I hope that in my lifetime I see all zoos and animal parks close, and no more captivity. Things have got to change.”